Youtube Trending Scraper

Youtube Trending Scraper

The Youtube Trending Scraper is a fast, reliable YouTube trending videos scraper that collects real-time “Most Popular” videos by region and category, then enriches them with titles, channels, views, likes, tags, thumbnails, dates, and URLs. It helps you scrape YouTube trending videos for SEO, content strategy, analytics, and newsroom research — without manual work. Built for marketers, developers, data analysts, and researchers, this YouTube trending data extractor lets you monitor trends across countries and categories at scale, producing clean CSV/JSON datasets you can trust. 🚀

What data / output can you get?

Below are the structured fields the actor saves for each video. Field names match the dataset exactly.

Data field	Description	Example value
type	Record type	"video"
id	YouTube video ID	"2dmCaK0qslM"
title	Video title	"Top 10 Nintendo Switch Games in 2026"
url	Watch URL	"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dmCaK0qslM"
description	Video description text	"We ranked the best Switch games you should play..."
duration	Duration in seconds (int or null)	894
views	View count (string)	"1,487,513"
likes	Like count (string)	"124,690"
comments	Comment count (string)	"1K"
channel.id	Channel ID	"UCE-8FgcXvnAsb2EG1FizSyg"
channel.name	Channel display name	"GameSphere"
channel.handle	Channel handle	"@gamesphere"
channel.url	Channel URL (or null)	"https://www.youtube.com/@gamesphere"
channel.subscriberCount	Subscriber count (string)	"4.8M subscribers"
channel.badges	Channel badges	["Verified"]
keywords	Video tags/keywords	["gaming","switch","top 10"]
category	Video category	"Gaming"
thumbnails[0].url	Thumbnail URL	"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/2dmCaK0qslM/maxresdefault.jpg"
thumbnails[0].width	Thumbnail width (int or null)	168
thumbnails[0].height	Thumbnail height (int or null)	94
isLive	Live stream flag	false
isFamilySafe	Family-safe flag	true
isRatingsAllowed	Ratings allowed	true
isPrivate	Private flag	false
isExclusive	Exclusive flag	false
embedUrl	Embed URL	"https://www.youtube.com/embed/2dmCaK0qslM"
isEmbeddable	Embeddable flag	true
isUnlisted	Unlisted flag	false
publishDate	ISO publish date	"2026-03-15T10:45:00-07:00"
uploadDate	ISO upload date	"2026-03-15T10:45:00-07:00"
relativeDate	Relative publish time (currently null)	null

Bonus: channel.badges and thumbnail dimensions are included when available. You can export your YouTube trending dataset to JSON, CSV, or Excel directly from the Apify dataset.

Key features

• 🛡️ Bold proxy resilience Uses a smart proxy system by default for YouTube, with automatic fallback from datacenter to residential when blocked. Retries gracefully and sticks with what works to maximize success.

• 🌍 Multi-region & categories Scrape YouTube most popular videos by country code and filter by trending categories: music, gaming, movies, sports, or entertainment.

• 🎛️ Precise sampling control Set maxVideosPerInput to limit per-country results (default 10). Use 0 for unlimited to collect the full regional chart.

• 🧱 Robust extraction pipeline Merges multiple sources (HTML/meta, ytInitialPlayerResponse, ytInitialData) to produce stable, enriched YouTube trending metadata: titles, channels, engagement metrics, tags, thumbnails, and dates.

• 🔌 Developer-friendly & automation-ready Built on Apify SDK (Python). Trigger via API, integrate with workflows (Zapier/Make/n8n) or connect to your data warehouse. Ideal as a YouTube trending analytics tool in production pipelines.

• ⚡ Lightweight, fast, and scalable Concurrent fetching with polite delays and detailed logs. Designed as a dependable YouTube trending monitor for batch runs across many regions.

How to use Youtube Trending Scraper - step by step

1. Sign in to Apify Console and open the “youtube-trending-scraper” actor.
2. In the Input tab, add your regions in startUrls:
   • Enter one 2‑letter country code per line (e.g., US, GB, IN, BD, JP).
   • Tip: A youtube.com link with &gl=XX uses region XX; unknown text defaults to US.
3. Choose the contentType:
   • Options: music, gaming, movies, sports, entertainment (default: gaming).
4. Set maxVideosPerInput:
   • Keep the default 10, choose a higher value for deeper coverage, or set 0 for unlimited.
5. Configure proxyConfiguration (recommended):
   • Turn on Apify Proxy for the best stability. The actor can automatically step up from datacenter to residential if blocked.
6. Click Start to run:
   • Watch logs for progress (video counts, extraction quality, proxy switches).
7. Download your results:
   • Go to the Dataset tab to preview data in a table and export to JSON, CSV, or Excel.

Pro tip: Orchestrate scheduled runs via the Apify API to build a long‑term YouTube trending dataset across regions and categories for BI dashboards.

Use cases

Use case name	Description
SEO research & keyword discovery	Identify trending keywords, tags, and topics from regional YouTube charts to guide content and metadata strategy.
Content strategy & editorial planning	Track category trends (gaming, music, sports, entertainment) to plan timely content that aligns with audience interests.
Market analysis by region	Compare YouTube trending topics across countries to understand cultural differences and regional performance.
Competitor monitoring	Monitor channels appearing in “Most Popular” lists and analyze engagement signals (views/likes/comments).
Academic & newsroom research	Collect structured YouTube trending datasets for cross‑sectional studies and timely reporting.
Data pipelines & analytics	Feed clean JSON/CSV into warehouses or notebooks via API for dashboards, modeling, or trend detection.

Why choose Youtube Trending Scraper?

The actor is engineered for precision and reliability, combining multi-source extraction with a smart proxy system for consistent results.

• 🎯 Accuracy-first extraction that merges HTML/meta, player response, and initial data
• 🌐 Regional + category targeting for granular insights at country level
• 📈 Scales from small samples to full charts using maxVideosPerInput controls
• 🧰 Developer access via Apify API for integration into Python/Node workflows
• 🔒 Public data only with polite rate handling and retries
• 💸 Cost-effective automation compared with brittle extensions or manual scripts
• 🔗 Export-ready datasets (CSV/JSON/Excel) that plug into analytics tools

Bottom line: a production-ready YouTube trending crawler that outlasts unstable alternatives and delivers clean, structured data.

Is it legal / ethical to use Youtube Trending Scraper?

Yes — when used responsibly. This actor collects publicly available information from YouTube pages and does not log in or access private data.

Guidelines to stay compliant:

• Scrape only public pages and metadata.
• Respect YouTube’s Terms of Service and your local regulations.
• Handle personal data carefully under GDPR/CCPA where applicable.
• Do not attempt to access private, unlisted, or authenticated content.
• Consult your legal team for edge cases and specific jurisdictions.

Input parameters & output format

Example input (only supported fields):

{
  "startUrls": ["US", "GB", "IN"],
  "contentType": "gaming",
  "maxVideosPerInput": 10,
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": true
  }
}

Input parameters

• startUrls (array, required): One 2‑letter country code per line (US, GB, IN, BD, JP, …). Unknown text defaults to US; a youtube.com link with &gl=XX uses region XX.
  • Default: none
• contentType (string, optional): Trending category to read. Options: music, gaming, movies, sports, entertainment.
  • Default: "gaming"
• maxVideosPerInput (integer, optional): Max trending videos to keep per country row. Set 0 for unlimited.
  • Default: 10 (minimum: 0)
• proxyConfiguration (object, optional): Apify Proxy settings. Recommended to reduce blocking. The actor can automatically step up through datacenter → residential.
  • Default: none

Example output (one item):

{
  "type": "video",
  "id": "2dmCaK0qslM",
  "title": "Top 10 Nintendo Switch Games in 2026",
  "status": "OK",
  "url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dmCaK0qslM",
  "description": "We ranked the best Switch games you should play...",
  "duration": 894,
  "views": "1487513",
  "likes": "124690",
  "comments": "1K",
  "channel": {
    "id": "UCE-8FgcXvnAsb2EG1FizSyg",
    "name": "GameSphere",
    "handle": "@gamesphere",
    "url": "https://www.youtube.com/@gamesphere",
    "subscriberCount": "4.8M subscribers",
    "thumbnails": [],
    "badges": ["Verified"]
  },
  "keywords": ["gaming", "switch", "top 10"],
  "isRatingsAllowed": true,
  "isLive": false,
  "isFamilySafe": true,
  "category": "Gaming",
  "isPrivate": false,
  "isExclusive": false,
  "thumbnails": [
    {
      "url": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/2dmCaK0qslM/maxresdefault.jpg",
      "width": 168,
      "height": 94
    }
    ],
  "embedUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/embed/2dmCaK0qslM",
  "isEmbeddable": true,
  "isUnlisted": false,
  "publishDate": "2026-03-15T10:45:00-07:00",
  "relativeDate": null,
  "uploadDate": "2026-03-15T10:45:00-07:00"
}

Note: Some fields may return empty strings or null if YouTube doesn’t expose them for a given video (e.g., thumbnails width/height, channel URL, relativeDate).

FAQ

Do I need to log in to use this YouTube trending videos scraper?

No. The actor collects publicly available data and does not require login or cookies. It fetches each video’s watch page and extracts metadata directly.

Can I scrape multiple countries and categories at once?

Yes. Add multiple country codes in startUrls (one per line) and pick a contentType (music, gaming, movies, sports, entertainment). The actor will process each region with your selected category.

How many videos can I collect per country?

You control this with maxVideosPerInput. The default is 10; set it to any positive number to cap results or 0 for unlimited to capture all available trending IDs for that region.

What fields does this YouTube trending data extractor return?

Each record includes id, title, url, description, duration, views, likes, comments, keywords, category, publish/upload dates, thumbnails (with dimensions when available), and channel details (id, name, handle, URL, subscriberCount, badges). See the Output section for a full example.

How does the proxy system work?

YouTube often blocks datacenter IPs. The actor uses a smart proxy manager that can initialize with Apify Proxy and automatically fall back across proxy types (datacenter → residential) on blocks or incomplete HTML. You can also provide your own proxyConfiguration.

Can I use it from Python or Node.js?

Yes. While the actor is implemented in Python, you can trigger runs and fetch datasets via the Apify API from any language. Many teams call it from Python or Node.js to build automated pipelines.

Is there a free trial?

Yes. The actor listing includes trial minutes so you can evaluate before subscribing. Check the Apify Store page for the current plan and allowances.

Does it work as a YouTube trending monitor?

Yes. Schedule recurring runs across regions and categories to build a long-term YouTube trending dataset you can analyze for seasonality, virality, and cross-country comparisons.

Closing thoughts

The Youtube Trending Scraper is built to turn regional “Most Popular” charts into structured, analytics-ready datasets. With proxy resilience, multi-source extraction, and flexible limits, it’s ideal for marketers, analysts, researchers, and developers who need dependable YouTube trending insights. Connect via the Apify API to automate exports to JSON/CSV/Excel and wire it into your data stack. Start extracting smarter YouTube trending datasets today and stay ahead of what’s going viral worldwide.